Running Together
by Pixel and Stephanie Forever
Summary: Civil War has broken out after Voldemort strikes at the Ministry of Magic. After escaping an attack on their home, Harry and Hermioen are forced to go on the run together and start to put things back the way they should be. Sequel to Living Together and Part 2 of the Together Arc. rated M for situations and because it contains 29% horsemeat!
1. Harry and Hermione – Cave Dwellers Extra

**Harry and Hermione – Cave Dwellers Extraordinaire**

Two Months…

Two Long Months…

It had been two months since Voldemort had launched his attack on the magical population of Britain – on the day that was supposed to be one of peace. The pair suspected that Voldemort and the Death Eaters got coal in their stockings that year…

Harry and Hermione had apperated to the Forest of Dean and hidden in the very middle to see if any Death Eaters came after them. They couldn't stay very long because it was simply impractical to do so and also because the wind, despite the use of magic, had battered down the tent and had been forced to take shelter in a set of caves on the south coast. From what they been able to discover, they had been used by smugglers hundreds of years ago. Harry and Hermione had spent an entire day clearing away the debris of rocks and dead animals before setting up a lot of repelling charms and pitching up the tent and looking around it. It was very much like a one floor flat, with a couple of bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom, living or common room area, library and other such places. There was also, for some strange reason, a room filled with dildos and other sex aids.

"Interesting…" said Hermione.

"I'm having this one" Harry took a long black one from the shelves.

"What for?" Hermione frowned – hoping Harry was not gay.

"Turned upside down, and it will be perfect for stirring soup and stuff"

"What about the others?"

"Rig them to explode and send them to Death Eaters – whoever heard of dying from sex toys?"

#

"I was thinking that we could go out and attack something" Hermione said.

"Not like you to suggest that sort of thing" Harry said, looking up from reading a book on Vampires.

"The war changes everyone, Harry" Hermione said. "All we've done is train and train and train – we have to do something to give people hope"

"Yeah, I know…" Harry said. "The trouble is what can we do?" he asked. "We can hardly put an advert in the paper or go on the wireless"

"Maybe its alright if we just attack a low ranking place and leave a note – the news would get out somehow" Hermione said.

"Perhaps" Harry said – putting the book down on the table. "You realise that we're going to have to kill people in order to win this war"

"I know"

"Are you capable of doing that?"

"Everybody is capable of killing others, Harry" Hermione said firmly.

"But can you do it?" he asked.

"To save you? Yes, I believe that I could" she said.

"Well try not to, Hermione. I have done that once already – let me be the murderer in this relationship"

"You've killed already?"

"Quillel" Harry said. "I saw him die just before I passed out"

"You didn't do that, Harry" Hermione said. "The love your mother gave to you through her sacrifice was responsible for that"

"So who do you propose that we attack?" Harry asked.

"Either Crabbe or Goyle" Hermione replied. "Both of them are low ranking members of the Death Eaters, will most likely have little more then standard protections around their homes and both families are rubbish at magical combat" and Harry thought about it for several minutes.

"Crabbe" he said. "If the father is anything like the son, then we've the better chance"

"Why not Goyle?" Hermione asked.

"Because the Goyles live close to the Malfoys" Harry said. "Help will be much closer to hand"

"I hadn't thought about that" Hermione admitted. "We had better stake out the area before doing anything. If they have defences and guards, we'll need to know about it before doing any kind of planning"

"A pity we don't have a reconnaissance plane" Harry gave a little laugh.

"We could make one" Hermione said.

"How?" Harry asked.

"You could fly over the place and take pictures" Hermione said. "I can do some spell work that will make you invisible. All you would have to do is to fly over, take the pictures, fly out and portkey back to here"

"That, Mione, is so stupid and dangerous that it might just work" Harry said. "There is one problem, however"

"What?"

"My Broom is at Hogwarts"

"I see your problem" Harry shook his head as Hermione went into a frown of concentration. "Maybe we could steal a broom from a Wizarding house" she suggested.

"Burgling?" Harry looked at her. "How do you know of such things?"

"I read, Harry" Hermione's expression was one of 'You know better' – something Harry found cute – and something else he couldn't put his finger on…

"We should be able to find out where they live" Harry said, "By looking through the copy of the _Who's Who of the Wizendgamot_"

"Of course… I knew there was a reason I kept you around"

"You mean my devilishly handsome good looks were not enough?"

"No"

"And my baking skills?"

"Hardly, Harry…" Hermione picked up the last item of her plate. "EVIL BEWARE" the girl said in a loud voice, "WE HAVE CUPCAKES!"

"That ought to do something to put the fright in them" Harry said.

"Are you taking the fun out of me?"

"Want me to fill you again?" Harry asked – and then shut up as he realised what he said and the manner in which he had spoken.

"Maybe I'll take up that offer at a later date, Potter" Hermione turned on all the charm and walked to her room – swaying her hips as she did so.

"I need a drink" Harry reached for a bottle of Firewhiskey. At the door to her room in the tent, Hermione turned back to gaze at him with a smouldering look before stepping inside. "Better make it a double…" Harry poured a double measure and downed it in one.

#

Harry lowered his wand as Hermione returned to the hedge they were hiding behind in the forest near the Crabbe house. It was the size of a small manor, and both Harry and Hermione knew it was most likely paid for by the funds taken in the first war – and supported by what they had taken so far in this one…

"What did you find?" he asked.

"Not much" Hermione said. "They've got Vampires patrolling the back of the place during the night – I saw their quarters for during the daytime. Between the edge of the forest and the house there is no cover to speak of"

"Damn" Harry whispered as he watched three wizards and a witch portkey into sight – getting greeted by a House Elf. "We can't fly in because of the protections surrounding this place, and I think that walking up to the front door and asking them to kindly let us in is out of the question"

"I didn't say I found nothing" Hermione shot back, pulling bits of leaves and twigs off her black jeans.

"What _did_ you find?"

"I found what looks like some kind of metal bars going over a hole in the ground" Hermione said. "From what I could make out, there was a corridor running underneath it which looked unprotected. I tried to see where it went, but I would have had to take away the cover. I wasn't sure if it was alarmed or something. I'll show you when we get back to the cave, but it really did look unprotected"

"_Looked unprotected_, Hermione" Harry said, looking at his watch. "We better get going back to where we came in – it's nearly dawn" and they crept as quietly as possible into the forest and returned to where they had come in at.

"Twilight" Hermione said, pointing to the sky.

"Breaking dawn" Harry replied, handing her the rope.

"Vampires do not sparkle" they spoke the password and were whisked away to the cave where they washed the face paint off themselves.

#

Over dinner, the pair discussed what they had each seen on their fact finding mission.

"It is clear that I can not fly anywhere near the place without tripping one of the wards" Harry said.

"I was wondering if that underground corridor runs to the manor" Hermione said. "If it _does_, then we'll be able to get in undetected, do our stuff and get out of there before anybody knows anything different"

"We'd need to eliminate people first and grab all the books we can from what they call a library" said Harry.

"I agree" said Hermione. "They might be mainly Dark Arts books, but we might be able to learn a way to defend our selves. We can also teach it to those that we free"

"_If_ there are others that are free, Hermione"

"We can not be the only ones not under Voldemort's thumb" she said. "There has to be pockets of resistance someplace"

"Then we'll have to find them as we go along" Harry replied before eating some more soup.

"What about the radio, Harry?"

"All it plays is bloody Death Eater shite, Mione"

"Not the Wireless, Harry" Hermione rolled her eyes. "I meant what I said when I said Radio. Muggles might not be able to see magical battles and all that, most of the time, but they will still experience the effects – remember the landslide in Wales?" and Harry nodded.

"We'll have a look and see if we can find a broken one that a muggle has thrown out" he said. "We should be able to fix it with a _Repairo_ and tune in to see what we can get in the way of news"

"And not have to listen to that rubbish the Death Eaters play" Hermione pointed out. "Going back to our original subject" she said, "When do you want to take another look at this hole in the ground?"

"Give it a few days and we'll go back" Harry finished his soup. "Maybe we could kill a Vampire or two while we're at it"

"Makes a change from the normal dates we have" Hermione shrugged. "I'll go out and find a broken radio"

"Are you going to be alright?" he asked.

"I can take care of myself" Hermione replied. "Or at least put up a good fight until I am able to be rescued by my dashing husband to be"

"I guess I got a little overprotective after hearing the news"

"Hearing the people that had been killed would do the same to me" Hermione assured him.

"Not the news that people are being tortured and killed for public fun and entertainment" Harry said. "I meant, Hermione" he sighed and rolled his eyes, "The news that you're pregnant"


	2. The Fight Back Begins

**The Fight Back Begins**

"I was thinking" Hermione said.

"About…?" Harry looked up from where he was creating a potion for Dreamless Sleep.

"When we go and raid the house. You said to kill everybody inside"

"I didn't explicitly mention killing, but I know what you mean… go on" Harry set the wooden spoon to stir on it own.

"If it comes down to killing people, do we kill the children?"

"A tough question" Harry said. "If we just go in and leave the children alive, we'd be letting Voldemort know who carried out the attack. If we kill them, then Voldemort will take out an even greater revenge then what he is doing so now"

"So what do we do?" asked Hermione.

"We'll have to come up with another way of carrying out the attack" Harry said. "We'll have to do it at night because that will give us the best chance of success. The only problem is our vision"

"I have been thinking of that"

"I thought you might" said Harry and was rewarded by a narrowed glance by his fiancée.

"I was thinking of throwing Instant Darkness powder around" Hermione said. "That way, everything would be confusing to the enemy"

"And how do we see?" Harry asked, not getting what Hermione was talking about.

"Have you ever heard of night vision goggles?"

"Things soldiers wear to see in the dark" Harry nodded. "But they will not work in magical areas"

"I know that, Harry" Hermione said patiently, "But there must be a way for us to charm them in such as way that they _will_ work"

"If you can do that, they'll never know what will hit them" Harry said. "I, too, have been thinking on our little intelligence gathering mission"

"Oh?"

"If they know of that passage under the ground, they might have it guarded quite well. I was thinking that, assuming we can steal a broom from somewhere, you fly backwards on it and cast spells at the attackers while I get us out of there"

"You are the better caster, Harry. You have power that others simply do not"

"True, but I am also a better flyer then you, Mione" Harry told her. "If I fly the broom, I can dodge incoming spells and fly us away and get us out of the shielded area before they realise we've escaped"

"You're right, Harry" Hermione sighed. "I'm not happy about flying on a broom, but I know it's the only way"

"Look at it this way – if we hit the ground and die, at least you won't know it. I'm just worried about putting you in harm's way…"

"Why?"

"The baby"

"Harry, I am carrying your child – I am _NOT _disabled" Harry cringed at the shout and curled into a ball. Hermione immediately felt sorry for him and rushed over to comfort him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to shout at you" she whispered as she stroked his head and back. Harry still had trouble with people raising their voices in anger at him. "Lets forget about this for a while" she offered. "What would you like to do?"

"You!" Harry scooped her up and carried her to the bedroom at the run – Hermione just giggled. "Remind me to marry you soon – before the baby comes"

"Alright" Hermione said, getting placed on Harry's bed. She was about to say something else when she saw Harry frown. "You won't hurt the baby" she said.

"Not that. I was wondering if you believe in sex before marriage" and Hermione shook her head at the question. They had already had made love – the result of which was Hermione becoming pregnant with Harry's child. Still, Harry was expecting some kind of answer…

"If it delays the service, then I would have to say no…" and started to take off her clothes.

#

"More fish" said a boy, rather glum sounding.

"Give a man a fish, and he can eat for a day" another boy said.

"Teach a man to fish, and he can open his own chain of chip shops" a blond girl said.

"If Luna is like this sober" the first boy said, "I'd like to see her pissed"

#

"Are we set?" asked Harry.

"I think so" Hermione said. "I would prefer to try these out first, but I suppose we'll have to work on those things as we go along…" she handed Harry a set of night vision goggles that had been charmed to work in a magical environment. It had been hard to find two of the sets, but they had managed to slip some out from a local Territorial Army barracks without being seen. Harry was thankful that he had given Hermione his cloak to wear, though he had been worried about sending Hermione out on a mission by herself. He knew that she was more than capable of doing anything she put her mind too, but he also did not want to put herself or his unborn child in danger. Tonight, however, he had no choice in the matter.

"I'm worried" he said at last.

"About what?" Hermione asked.

"About getting captured" Harry replied. "We don't know what kind of numbers we are talking about inside the manor, or what kind of charms and wards are over the grounds. We could have a million Death Eaters on us the moment we fire our first spells"

"Hardly a million" Hermione frowned.

"You know what I mean" Harry replied, retying his boot laces.

"I know what you mean, and I know that you mean well enough…" Hermione sighed. "I worry about you just as much as you worry about us" she patted her stomach gently. "Promise me one thing, Harry?"

"Of course"

"We either get out of there together and alive - or not at all"

"Wouldn't have it any other way" Harry said, straightening up. "Wait a minute - if you get yourself killed by accident, does that I mean I have to turn my wand on myself?"

"Yes"

"Bugger"

"We better get going" Hermione said, looking at the clock by the wall of the tent.

"_Onwards, Mon Ami, to Moscow_" Harry said. "Or Cheshire at any rate"

#

They spent an hour in the darkness of the forest in order to make sure there were no last minute changes that would upset their plans. Nothing, however had changed and they were able to creep around the grounds and get to the hole in the ground. Tying a rope around the strongest of the bars, and testing their weight on it, Harry and Hermione climbed down into the passage and lit their wand tips – casting small beams of light wherever they were pointed.

"This way" Harry said. They moved quickly and quietly to the end of the tunnel – ending up facing a wooden door that was locked.

"Nobody in the room on the other side" Hermione said, casting a detection spell.

"Any charms on the door or anything else that would alert people?" Harry asked.

"No" Hermione studied the spell's results. Harry sighed in relief and cast an unlocking spell and the door moved almost imperceptibly as the lock was undone.

"We're in" Harry said, leading the way into the house. Checking that the coast was clear, Hermione ensure that the door could not be closed with them knowing about it. "Point me Lord Crabbe" he hoped that the spell he had learned for the Tri-Wizard would help him in this moment of need. The wand rose almost a half inch before turning on its end and pointing upwards.

"Asleep in bed" Hermione said.

"Or having sex"

"Unless he is forcing someone to do it to him" Hermione shuddered. They slapped down the night vision goggles and threw some the instant darkness powder that the Weasley Twins had given to them as part of Christmas present. The entire hall, where they had exited to from the passage way, was plunged into total darkness – only the goggles gave them the ability to see in the pitch blackness. Taking it slowly up the stairs, and throwing more powder when needed, they got to the floor that the Point Me spell indicated that the head of the Crabbe family was at that moment in time.

"When we go in, I want him awake" Harry's low voice sounded forceful. "I want him to know who is going to end his life the way that he ended the lives of others"

"Are you sure you want to kill him?" Hermione asked. "Once we do that, there is no turning back – you know that, right?" and she could see Harry's green coloured form nod once.

"You just make sure that you get his Mark once he is dying" he said to her, scanning the floor for anybody. "We might have seconds to get back into the tunnel, out the hole and to the cave!"

"I have the knife ready to cut it out of his skin" Hermione said, feeling the knife in the sheath on her jeans belt.

"Lets go" Harry said, moving off and entering a bedroom on the right of the landing. It was just as well that they wore the goggles as the bedroom was dimly lit and they heard the sounds of moaning. When they reached the bed, Hermione pulled back the curtains to reveal Crabbe engaged with raping Daphne Greengrass. Harry sent the girl spinning out from under the overweight man before casting _Crucio_ on her several times

"What are you doing?" Hermione exclaimed. "She is our friend"

"And if we just left her alone…?" Harry replied, making sure that Crabbe was bound up, gagged and ready to be dealt with. "They would torture her more then what they have already done so. By making it seem as if they played with her a while, it appears that Crabbe's attackers had no plans for Daphne. This is as much as for her protection as it is for ours. In the state she is in now, she will not be able to hear our voices or know who attacked her" and Hermione conceded the issue.

"I still don't like it" she said, pulling out the knife and bringing it towards the man who shook and screamed through the gags and binds.

"War is a dirty business" Harry said, "And we're just the cleaning ladies" he turned to look at the figure tied up before him. "Before we begin, I would just like to thank you for your help in our work. You might know of it, but this is going to help us in our plans – and all down to you" he heard, without turning to see what caused it, the sound of metal sliding on leather. "We've never tried this before" Harry said, noting Hermione moving to his side, "But they say you could last a short period before dying…"

The knife slashed down through the air and made contact with flesh and bone…

#

Harry's first reaction was to be sick the moment they reached the cave. Although he knew that he would be forced to kill in order to be free, it was the first death that he had seen like that. Cedric Diggory's death, and that or the others he seen in person or through the connection he shared with Voldemort, had been clean deaths by way of the Killing Curse.

"Are you alright?" Hermione asked gently.

"I will be" Harry replied, washing out the acrid tang of vomit from his mouth. As he stepped outside the toilet, Hermione pushed a large glass of Firewhiskey into his hands.

"For medicinal purposes" she told him. "I will help to administer the dose" Hermione indicated another glass that she had nearby.

"I would hope that we never have to do that again, but we shall have to again" Harry sipped the drink. "That was the first death that I ever saw terror in the dead" he remarked.

"Oh?" Hermione replied.

"I don't remember the death of my parents, Quirrell's death I can't remember because of Voldemort's ghost, Cedric and Sirius both got hit by the Killing Curse and they never felt anything…"

"I have seen terror on somebody about to die" Hermione said. "The only thing is that he didn't die and I am going to marry him"

"You _are_ talking about me – right?" Harry asked after a short pause.

"No… I was referring to some other person who has saved the magical world three times already" Hermione rolled her eyes at him.

"If that is what it takes to save people, they can find another hero – I'm going on strike" Harry swallowed a mouthful of the Firewhiskey – feeling it slide down his throat like a liquid fire. "I wonder how long it will take for them to find the body" he wondered.

"I don't know" Hermione replied. "If somebody came into his room, they might have found in him with enough time to save his life"

"I hope not" Harry muttered darkly. "Anyway… What have we actually demonstrated?" he asked.

"Even if we did kill a low ranking Death Eater" Hermione said, "Voldemort will divert resources to find his killer and punish them. At the very least, we gave people enough time to find a place to hide or to run away out of the country"

"And, if we're lucky, regroup for a counter offensive" Harry said, "But we've not been lucky at all. Over the last two months, Voldemort and the Death Eaters have taken over every single part of magical Britain, killed hundreds – if not thousands, and are now starting their plans on the Muggles. We've found out that some of our friends have been captured and maybe killed. We lost not just the battle, but, perhaps, even the very war"

"I was looking over the papers we grabbed before leaving" Hermione said, "And some of them are battle orders for raids and such. Crabbe was told to take seven new recruits and test them against so called Mudbloods and Traitors in the Yorkshire Moors"

"So?"

"Except the orders are repeated on several different days" Hermione said. "I'd have to guess that there is some kind of group trying to fight the Death Eaters. If there is, then we will have to make contact with them"

"Does it name anybody?" Harry looked a little cheerful at the news.

"No"

"Well at least we know one group is still out there" Harry said. "But it all depends on how many actually survived the various attacks – and we don't know where they are"

"I have a theory on how we can find out" Hermione paused, thought a while before continuing on. "You share a connection with Voldemort because of your scar. It connects you to him when he is angry or his mind is open" and Harry nodded.

"But he has to be either very angry or badly exhausted in magical terms" he said.

"I know" Hermione told him. "You, and don't take this the wrong way, are not unlike the Death Eaters. You both, through marks on your bodies, share a connection which Voldemort can make use of"

"But their Dark Marks are there as a symbol of their service to him" Harry said. "He uses it to call them to him for gatherings"

"And now we have a mark of our own" Hermione pointed to the ragged skin on which was the Dark Mark – the symbol of the Death Eaters' service and loyalty to Voldemort. "I've read everything I know about these sorts of things, Harry, and I think I know how we can turn it into an advantage for us"

"How?" Harry finished the last of his Firewhiskey and thought of going to bed.

"To use the connection, he has to use the mark of a Death Eater"

"Right"

"But to call some, or all, to him he has to open up his mind" Hermione said. "I'm guessing that, so long as you are touching the mark and think of being in Voldemort's mind, we might be able to gain some useful information. We might not be able to use it too many times, but we might be able to make a difference in the fighting"

"The only problem" Harry hauled himself out of the armchair, "Is that my mind will be open to Voldemort. If he knows that, he could let me sit in his mind whilst I am turned into a mindless hulk"

"There was that one little issue" Hermione winced.

"We'll talk about this in the morning, but I really would like to go to bed" Harry said. After wishing Hermione a good night, or what remained of it, Harry went to his bed wondering why he felt he could live with causing the death of another human being…

#

"What is it?" Voldemort said, beginning to aim his wand at the follower who had run into the throne room.

"My Lord, we had not heard from Crabbe after we knew the mission had been a success" the follower said quickly. "I thought he must be drunk and went to get his report in person. But, My Lord, I found Crabbe dead"

"From drink, I suppose?"

"No, My Lord"

"No?" Voldemort raised an eyebrowless eyebrow. "Then continue…"

"Nobody in the house could open the door to his private bedroom, and we ended up having to demolish it with a blasting hex. We went inside to find Crabbe and the Greengrass girl there"

"And?"

"I regret, My Lord, to inform you that Crabbe is dead"

"Killed by the Greengrass girl, one presumes"

"No, My Lord"

"Oh…?" Voldemort gave off a short laugh. "It seems that today is one of surprises, does it not? How" he asked the follower, "Did Crabbe die, if not by the actions of the Greengrass girl?"

"We found the Greengrass girl under the effects of a number of _Crucio_s, My Lord. We thought that Crabbe was in red bed sheets, but we found the sheets soaked in blood and his Mark had been cut out"

"Out?"

"Yes, My Lord" the follower said, calculating the time needed to dodge the killing curse. "It looks like he was alive when it was taken, but we know not whom it was from. None of the wards had been triggered and none of the elves said they had felt anything out of the ordinary"

"Any type of message left by the murderers?"

"Just one small sheet of parchment, My Lord" the follower handed it to the man he had pledged his loyalty and service to. Voldemort read the note and presumed it to be in some kind of code. There was no way that anyone could tell by the handwriting because it appeared to have been stencilled. As he looked at it again, he was certain that it was all in code.

_We got one back… Means that we shall have to arrange a rematch. Pools panel say no score draw_

"Go and see the others on the raid last night" Voldemort commanded. "Find out if they are still alive and if they know anything about what happened. When we discover who has done this, I will crush them like ants…"

Yes, My Lord" replied the follower. Severus Snape thought that, as things went, he was doing pretty good for the day.

#

It had been one death, Hermione knew this, but it was a death that was greatly appreciated in the greater balance. As she sat and watched flames in the tent's fireplace dance around, Hermione wondered how Harry would be in the morning. Even though he knew the death was needed, he still thought it was a step to becoming like Voldemort. She, on the other hand, reasoned that it was an evil thing that they needed to do. It was, anyway, the right thing to do for the girl.

In killing Crabbe, she knew it was one step closer to freedom…

And, above all else, one step closer to protecting Harry…


	3. Battle of The Hotel D' Azkaban

**Battle of The Hotel D' Azkaban**

Over the space of the next month, they raided three homes and took out the heads of four families. From what they were able to gather, from newspapers stolen from wizarding homes, Voldemort was in a rage about the murders of his followers. Or, rather, the Ministry was concerned about the deaths of those upright members of society… It was clear, to all but the most stupid, that Voldemort had taken over the Ministry and installed his own puppet Minister – a man, ironically named Quisling.

"I've been thinking"

"Careful" Hermione warned her friend.

"Five people are dead, and that is all very well" Harry continued, "But I think its time that we did something more – I think we have to go on the offensive"

"Right" Hermione said. "I'll just nip to the toilet and then strap on my Spitfire, go up to Angels Two Zero and have a bash at them" and Harry laughed from amusement.

"That _would_ be a sight to see" he said, wiping tears from his eyes, "But lets go for something a little less complicated"

"Oh" Hermione said. "I have a pair of Hurricanes in my trunk"

"Stop it" Harry threw a cushion at her. "I'm thinking that we should go raid a house and do some serious damage"

"Or" Hermione said as she worked over a few plans, "We could do a raid on Azkaban"

"You want to stage a major assault with two people on a heavily fortified prison, release numerous important persons, get them all out and be home in time for tea and crumpets?" Harry raised an eyebrow at her. "You're mad!" he declared. "We'd never be able to breach it" but Hermione snorted and shook her head.

"It's a Prison, Harry" she told him. "There is no trouble at all getting in – the hard part is getting _out_"

"We do not know the size, the strength or the disposition of the enemy forces" Harry said. "And, come to that, we do not know if anybody we know is being held there" but he listened to the argument Hermione made for the island Prison. By the end, he agreed that, while it might be an important target, the release of some prisoners would do wonders for anybody remaining free. They knew some pockets of resistance were holding out, like the one in Yorkshire and a party of people on the Salisbury Plains – but, crucially, not who was leading them. It was safe to assume that they knew Harry and Hermione were not in the hands of Voldemort, otherwise they would have been tortured and killed before having their bodies shown around in public.

"We are going to have to study hard on what we know about the place" said Harry, "And read everything in the books we brought with us. We'll need to know the layout, the normal guard numbers, deployment locations, number of floors…" and Hermione nodded and both went to the tent's makeshift library to start selecting books.

#

The cells for the highest value prisoners were deep in the lowest parts of the Prison. No light, save for the torches, ever touched the walls. Kept in the cells were those people Voldemort knew were too valuable to kill and yet too valuable to keep under house arrest. Anybody he and his Death Eaters caught, who had been deemed important enough, had also been thrown into cells. Their conditions were poor, but the Aurors guarding them were in no mood to treat them well – all had been placed under heavy Imperious charms and made to treat them poorly. So long as they did not actually die, Voldemort didn't care what happened to them.

"Neville?" a voice called in the dim light. Hannah Abbott was one of the first to have been thrown inside prison – her friendship with the Bones' made her high on the capture list.

"Yes?" a reply came back. Neville had been captured a few weeks ago during one of the frequent Death Eater attacks in the area of their hiding place. Daphne Greengrass had been a part of the same group, but Neville had not seen or heard of her since the minute he'd been stunned by a lucky shot. He had no way of knowing that she was alive but had been used a plaything by Crabbe.

"Have you heard anything from the guards?" Hannah asked.

"Only that somebody did another attack two nights ago" Neville said. "You-Know-Who is still looking for them. I wonder who they are" he added.

"Harry and Hermione?" Hannah asked – her voice filled with hope.

"If they had any sense, Hans, they'd be well out of the country"

"Hermione, yes" Hannah said, "But Harry rushes in where Angels fear to tread. I'll lay all the clean straw in this cell that it is him"

"If you two do not mind" the voice of one of the Patil twins called over from another cell, "I'd like to enjoy my terrible existence, at this moment in time, in a somewhat quieter environment – thanks"

"We should try to get a message out to him somehow" Neville said.

"How?" asked Hannah.

"I haven't figured that bit out" said Neville.

"If we were more powerful, I'd suggest that we send him a Patronus with a message" the Patil twin said.

"But we have no wand, and this is too powerful for us to try wandless" Hannah said, shivering as the Dementors came close to her cell.

"What about" Neville suggested, "If we all try and put what magic we can together and send a single message out? I don't know if there are wards to stop that, but it's worth a try"

#

It took the best part of a day, but the messenger Patronus found Harry and Hermione whilst gathering seaweed for some potions. Given the limited time left, the Patronus had spoken quickly, but, with the aid of the Pensive, they went back several times to hear the message fro the trio.

"_Hope this finds you_" came the collective voiced message. "_We're being held in Azkaban in the high security cells in the lowest levels of the fortress. Think we're going to be executed in the next few days. Please come and save us_"

Harry's reply, using Hermione's patronus, was short, simple, to the point and contained just three words:

_We are coming_

#

With such a short time left to them to plan the attack, Hermione ditched the thoughts of looking at plans of Azkaban in favour of Harry's solution of simply walking in through the front door.

"They won't be expecting that" he said to her that evening. The plan was for them to attack the following morning when guards would be tired from sleep and when the human body, worn out from staying up during the dark, was simply sluggish. The mind would take longer to respond to situations and would give the pair the edge they hoped for. Getting close was not all that hard as they spent a little of their Muggle money and took a couple of trains to the seaside town of Yarmouth. They spent the day before the attack at an abandoned site of an World War 2 army camp, hiding in the corner the furthest away from the country road – slapping up a couple of repelling wards for good measure. Harry took a Dreamless Sleep at about 8pm that evening and went to a good number of hours sleep – having first checked that their stolen broom was in working order. He'd taken it for a test flight and, because he thought he had been spotted, created a complex pattern in some fields below – knowing the muggles would assume he had been a UFO and had created a Crop Circle to fool them. During the flight to Azkaban Island, Hermione would be asleep in the feather-light and interiorly expanded trunk – allowing her to catch up with some sleep that she had missed over the last few days. She would also be needed during the flight away from Azkaban – playing tail gunner for anyone who tried to shoot them out of the skies.

#

"Azkaban off the port bow" Harry said quietly. Hermione heard and looked at the dismal looking island they approached. Even from this distance, she could feel the cold of the place from the Dementors and the general inhospitable condition of the barren pile of rock that the fortress was built on. Muggles could not see it from land or from the air, and a tricky repelling spell, and some understanding from the Muggle Prime Minister, made all ships to pass the island port or starboard side on to the island – and only on one side only. It was, to Muggles, disguised as an oilrig.

"See anybody?" Hermione asked.

"No" Harry replied, "But that does not mean they're not under some kind of disillusionment spell. We land, blast our way in, battle down to the cells, find anybody that we can, fight our way out and fly away"

"It sounds easier then it really is" Hermione said, taking her wand from the holster and adjusting the armour she wore. Without being able to go to Diagon Alley and buy, at great cost, Dragon Hide armour for themselves, the pair had had to come up with an alternative solution. Knowing that they would need armour at some point, they had taken two suits of armour from a Death Eater home that the pair had attacked. It wasn't the best solution, but they'd worked with what options were open to them. The metal in the armour would deflect most spells and take two or three powerful spells to smash.

"From what Sirius told me once or twice" Harry said as he brought the broom to the ground, "The cells we want are accessed directly from the reception area. Once we have eliminated the guards at the front desk, we'll make walls in the passages and corridors to slow down the response" he slid off the broom and helped Hermione out of the trunk which they shrunk and would be taking with them inside. They stepped up to the main doors where Harry saw Hermione frowning. "What?"

"I always thought it was rude to go into a place without knocking" she replied.

"Oh" and Harry battered down the door with two overpowered blasting hexes. "Happy?" he smiled and led the way inside – casting hexes and jinxes where he could find a target. It took seconds for them to clear the reception and surrounding areas, and they created walls designed to take a lot of punishment before breaking down. Finding the staircase to the lower levels, Harry and Hermione made their way into the very bowels of Azkaban itself.

#

"Getting light" said the voice of Neville.

"I guess Harry thought it wasn't worth the effort to get us" said the Patil twin.

"If I have learned anything from Gryffindor" said Hannah's voice, "It is that you never abandon your friends. I know that Harry will make it before they come to execute us"

"And" the Patil twin asked, "What happens if he does not turn up and save us?"

"Then" Neville replied, "We'll die on our feet rather then as broken shells"

"Nice speech" Hannah said.

"Thank you, good lady" Neville replied cheerfully, "I was pract-" he stopped as he heard a loud thump from down the corridor. "What was that?" he asked.

"I don't know" replied the Patil twin. A moment later she added, "All I can see is smoke dust and debris falling"

"Ceiling collapsed" Hannah guessed. "They'll not bother to get us out"

"They will" Neville replied. "They will want us to face them before they torture and kill us in public" then he saw something go zooming past the small gap in his cell door. "Did you see that?" asked the boy.

"I don't know what it was" said Hannah, "But I can hear fighting going on" and then flinched automatically as something else zipped past her cell door. By now, most of the occupants of the high security cells had stirred from their floors and pressed against the barred window in their cells doors to catch a glimpse of what was going on.

"Maybe the Order has come to rescue us" suggested a hoarse voice.

"Could be a Death Eater trick" said another. They listened for another ten minutes as spells were fired, people screamed in agony and dust swirled down the dank cell corridor and inside the cells through the gaps. As sudden as it had come, the sounds stopped and only footsteps could be heard. The fitter of the prisoners readied themselves to take on anyone who came in – better to go down fighting.

"Right" said an all too familiar voice, "I'm your new entertainment manager. Who is up for a spot of breaking out of cells, followed up by a nice day of playing freedom?"

"Harry Potter?" asked most of the cell occupants at the same time.

"The one and only" Harry replied. "You'd all better stand back from the doors. I'm going to use the universal door key"

"Universal door key?" a number of the prisoners asked themselves – milliseconds before the question was answered for them with their cell doors being blasted open by Harry and Hermione.

"We got everybody's wands, but we're not sure whose wand is whose, so you'll have to work that one out yourselves" Hermione handed out wands to everybody. There was some exchanging before the wands were reunited with their rightful owners.

"Once we get topside, you're all going to have to get in this trunk we've got" Harry explained the plan to the freed group before leading the way back over the bodies of the fallen Death Eaters and to the staircase.

#

"My Lord, we can not contact Azkaban" a follower said, looking up from the Floo as he sensed Voldemort's entry to the Floo room.

"You have tried Portkeys?" Voldemort simply _knew_ that he had hidden that packet of cheese biscuits somewhere round here. He suspected Lucius Malfoy had taken them without mentioning it – there'd be blood.

"There is too much atmospheric interference" the follower said. "We are trying to get contact via Floo, but it doesn't seem to be working. I have dispatched a few of your followers on broom from the closest point to Azkaban. It may simply be that the security wards were tripped by accident and they have not realised this yet"

"Very well" Voldemort was going to have words with the senior of the Malfoys about taking his personal food. "Inform me when you have regained contact with Azkaban and get them to send me their report at the same time"

"Yes, My Lord" the follower bowed and tried to get the island fortress on the Floo.

#

Only the pair of them remained with Hannah, Neville and Padma Patil, standing under the pier at Yarmouth – the spray from crashing waves just misting over their clothes. A light wind caused their clothing to flutter and flap around their legs and arms.

"Looks like we're the last" Neville said, creating a Portkey for them. "I know that everyone will be thrilled to see you ag-"

"We're not going" Harry said.

"What?" Hannah squeaked out.

"We're not going" he repeated.

"Why?" asked Padma.

"Because we have to do things on our own… Have to search for things on our own"

"But people need you!" Neville couldn't get why the pair didn't want to come with them.

"People need to be free, Neville, but they can not do that if we're both captured" Hermione said. "There are a number of… Well, lets just say we need to travel around a lot and find certain objects before doing anything"

"Maybe we can help" Padma said, and Harry smiled but shook his head.

"If we had the choice, Padma, we would gladly take your help" he said, gently squeezing her shoulder in thanks. "What we are doing and what we are looking for must remain secret – even from our friends"

"It is for the best" Hermione added. "With two people only, we can sneak into places that a larger group would have difficulty in doing"

"So you're disappearing from us again?" Hannah asked. "We could stun you and take you with us"

"Like to see you try" Harry said with a slight smile. "Still… people need to know that I am still out there fighting for them – even if they can not do so themselves. In a place called Scarborough, there is a place called Peasholme Park. On the last Sunday of every month between now and then, meet me and Hermione on the island with the leaders of the free side. Have them dressed as Muggles so they don't stand out at all…"

"What if you can't get there?" asked Neville.

"We'll be there" Harry said.

"Can you not come back with us for just a few moments?" asked Padma. "You can say you're on a mission or something which means that you can not stay for that long"

"It would give everybody the perfect ending to what has happened" Hannah added.

"Do you have pie?" asked Hermione.

"Yes" the three said at the same time.

"Hannah – drop" Harry said.

"What?" the girl blinked, but Hermione saw and pushed her out of the way as Harry took the shot and sliced off the left leg of a Death Eater – the witch falling to the ground in terrible agony. As the others looked around with drawn wands for more Death Eaters, Harry walked other, picked up the severed limb and then belted the crap out of the witch with the bleeding portion. Once he was sure that she was unconscious, Harry rummaged through the robes, found a Portkey and threw it on the Death Eater and activated it.

"What was that?" asked Padma.

"Hermione promised me that the next Death Eater I severed a limb from I could beat round the head with the wet end" Harry said. "She must have followed us from Azkaban and watched you all leave. A shame about that, but at least she did not overhear your destinations" he shook his head.

"Do you still want the pie?" Padma asked after a long silence between them all.

# # # # #

"I wish that we could have stayed, Harry" said Hermione that evening. The pair had stayed for two hours before leaving to return to the cave. Their brief appearance seemed to cheer up the large group they had transported to with the trio of escaped convicts. There had been many requests for them to stay, but they had accepted the pair's repeated statements that they had a dangerous job to do and that they'd make the group an extremely big target if they did not.

"Mione, you know that a smaller group will be able to get in and do the things we need to do quicker and quieter then a large group. We are the two most powerful of our year, and we stand the better chance now we go after the Horcruxes" Harry said.

"We need to find the first one" Hermione said. "All we know is that it is something that Voldemort has, needs and must protect. I've tried looking through nearly the entire library, but I haven't been able to find out what a Horcrux actually is" she added.

"I didn't get the impression that it was a spell" Harry replied, eyes closed in thought.

"Some kind of magical creature?" Hermione suggested. "A magical device?" but Harry merely shrugged.

"I don't know, Mione, but I'm certain you will be able to find out – you always do" he finished by opening his eyes and rewarding the girl with a smile that made her feel warm and fuzzy.

"You realise that I might not be able to do that" she said.

"I have faith that you will, Mione" Harry assured her, patting her hand to support that statement. After having dinner, the pair went for an early night – still in separate bedrooms.

#

"They've gone to bed" said Hedwig.

"Thank God for that" said Crookshanks. He walked over to the still burning fire and pulled out the hidden pack of Marshmallows. Hedwig pulled out two toasting forks and hopped with them in her beak to sit next to Crookshanks. They spent the next hour and a half toasting Marshmallows before going to sleep themselves.


	4. The Best Made Plans…

**The Best Made Plans…**

It was not until a week later that Hermione found the first alarming reference to what a Horcrux was. She found Harry giving their one and only broom a service in the kitchen – the various parts all in little groups as he stripped it down and then put it back together again.

"You look" Harry said dryly, "Like a girl with a problem"

"I found a mention of the Horcruxes" Hermione said. Harry froze before wiping his hands from the oil and following Hermione into the sitting room.

"So, Mione, what did you find out?" he asked.

"According to this" Hermione tapped the large, heavy and old looking tome, "A Horcrux is an object that is used for some of the darkest of all magic. It is so secret, that only three people should know what they truly are. The Minister of the day, the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and the head of the Unspeakables. Only on the day they leave office do they inform their successors of the nature of the things. Rumours exist, of course, but this book says it all"

"What is it?" Harry asked.

"A Horcrux is the name given to an object that stores a part of your soul"

"You're joking!"

"I wish that I was" Hermione sighed, flipping over the old parchment pages. "It goes on in great detail about the origin of the things and such like, but I'll give you the shorthand version. Back in the old days of wars and Dark Lords, Horcruxes were made to ensure that, if one was defeated and killed, you could still come back to life. You can split your soul six times – with the seventh piece residing in the original body"

"And Voldemort has these?" Harry asked whilst skimming through the parts Hermione pointed at.

"I'm certain of it" Hermione said. "It is the only way that he could have come back alive again"

"How do you make them?" Harry looked up. "And, more importantly, how do you destroy them?"

"I don't know how you can destroy them, but it does mention how you make them. In order to make a Horcrux, you have to have performed a great piece of magic – like killing somebody. Then, when the very magic is excited, you perform a complex spell and place one seventh of your soul into the object of your choosing"

"Like what?"

"Anything" Hermione replied. "It could be a cup, plate, tiara, a pair of your Aunt's knickers – Anything"

"I doubt that Voldemort is that desperate as to get into my Aunt's knickers" Harry said dryly. "Does it say how you can find them?" he asked.

"The book says that the Horcruxes are immune to summoning and tracking spells" Hermione said, flipping another page and speed reading it. "But you will be able to find it by hearing it"

"Hearing it?" Harry frowned.

"I don't understand it all" Hermione admitted, "But it makes some kind of noise that is audible to magical and muggles alike"

"Any idea what Voldemort would have used for these Horcruxes?" Harry asked, but Hermione simply shrugged in reply.

"Something that would have meant a lot to him" Hermione frowned before looking at him with an unspoken apology. "The entry simply stops there. It is as if even the very thought of this was covered up and all teaching banned"

"I guess that we had better start making a list of things this snake is…" Harry stopped before breaking into a wide grin. "That bloody great snake of his! I bet that must be one of these Horcrux thingies…"

"A living being holding the soul of another?" Hermione frowned. "Is that evening possible?"

"Ginny had it happen to her back in her first year – our second" and Harry's grin got wider. "Voldemort's diary! The ghost of what was Tom Riddle said he was merely but a fragment – a piece of the soul…"

"Of course…!" Hermione went for some paper and a pencil before starting to make a list of possible items with Harry – then crossing off ones they later thought of as not possible. "Two in as many minutes" she said.

"Next thing we'll know, you'll be able to cook better"

"Magic can only do so much…" Hermione wagged her finger and mock glared at him in best school teacher expression.

"What do you think is going to happen to the others?" asked Harry, putting down the pieces of the broom down on the table.

"You said it yourself, Harry – We have to be away from them" said Hermione gently.

"I know… I know… Doesn't make it any more easier" Harry sighed. Hermione wondered if all the stress was finally getting to him. She herself was only coping for the simple reason of actually taking Calming Draughts. It was only when Harry was safely asleep that the girl allowed herself to feel the emotions she denied herself in order to keep Harry strong.

"I was wondering if you'd like to go over some of our year texts" said Hermione, coming up with something to take Harry's mind off the fighting.

"Typical Hermione" Harry shook his head. "We've got all kinds of fighting going on and she wants to do homework… Oh, alright, then…" he left the stripped down broom and followed Hermione to the library in the tent.

# # # # #

"_Gone_?" Voldemort asked.

"Indeed, My Lord" Snape replied. "Seems as if somebody broke _into_ Azkaban before releasing all of the prisoners of any value"

"Do you have any ideas as to whom this might be?"

"We tried speaking to the House Elves there, but we were unable to find out anything because they were all doing other things at the time"

"I assume, Severus, that you have an idea as to who it might be…?"

"If it pleases My Lord"

"I doubt that it will please me, but please go on"

"I suspect Potter, My Lord, this is just the sort of thing that he will be doing in order to give his followers false hope"

"Potter…" Voldemort tried the name like a food he hadn't tried before. "Mmm… It would be like him to make such a rash move. Have we heard from our spy yet?" the thought occurred to him.

"Not yet, My Lord, but I assume that he has been delayed in getting out to meet at the designated place" Snape replied.

"Very well" Voldemort leant back in his chair. "You have a school to run, Severus. As you leave, please have my most loyal and trusted servants attend me"

"But I am already here, My Lord"

"Few could get away with that, Severus, and you are one of them. However, be careful that you do not use up all of my good nature. Be gone" and Snape bowed low to the ground before Voldemort and headed out of the hall.

# # # # #

"You alright in there?" asked Harry. It was several weeks after the breakout and Hermione had started having morning sickness. Her bump was also starting to show by quite a bit and Harry was just getting to the point where he would have to put his foot down and forbid her from going on the dangerous of all of their missions. In the time since they had found out about Horcruxes, the pair had tracked down two of them – putting them in a strong metal box and the whole lot placed under heavy protection and security charms. They would stay that way until they had figured out a way to destroy them.

"No" came a faint reply.

"You want to take a lie down or something?" Harry suggested. "You _have_ been working so hard on searching for ways to destroy the Horcruxes"

"If I ever agree to have another of your children, would you mind awfully shooting me?" Hermione groaned. She looked up to see Harry pushing his bowl away from his place at the table. "What is it? Are you feeling ill?" the girl asked before vomiting again.

"No, Mione, but I have suddenly lost my appetite for porridge" Harry replied. He flicked his wand and levitated Hermione back to her bedroom where he put her in pyjamas and ensured that she was well before leaving to do some tidying up. As he worked around the tent, Hedwig and Crookshanks helping out, Harry wondered what sort of a father he would be like. Growing up, he'd not known that much love or affection from the Dursleys, and he knew that he would be a much better father then Vernon was. He wondered if he was going to have a boy or a girl – but either was alright so long as they were healthy and just generally alright. "Feels funny to be becoming a father" he muttered.

"I am sure that you will do fine" Hedwig said.

"Thanks" Harry shook his head.

#

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" Hermione said, bouncing into the room as Harry blinked and rubbed his eyes.

"If you don't get off my bed and stop being so bloody cheerful" he replied, "I'll hand you to Voldemort myself" and hit her in the bottom with a little stinging hex. Hermione shuddered in pleasure before handing Harry some presents that she, Hedwig and Crookshanks had spent days working on. "You look as if you could do with another lie down" Harry looked up from opening a card from Hedwig.

"I wanted to make sure that breakfast was ready for you" Hermione said. "I got it under a warming and preservation charm" she added. "All you have to do is – YAHHHHH!" she screamed as Harry flipped her up and into bed. "Let me out you fiend" she cried.

"Nope" Harry grinned and started to touch and feel Hermione's soft skin. "I think I'll unwrap this one first…" he gave a muffled laugh because he and Hermione were kissing the other and going into a whole lot more. The lovemaking was passionate but also careful as Harry didn't want to harm the baby – something Hermione found both cute and typically Harry-like. She felt the luckiest girl on the planet and was in a complete state of bliss and contentment.

She had no idea that it would all come crashing down a few months later…

#

"_Accio Cheese Crisps_"

"HEY!" Harry protested as the bag flew out of his hands and went towards Hermione.

"My need is greater then yours" she replied – munching on the spoils she had just gained. With Hermione's pregnancy now reaching the last stages, her craving for food was getting slightly out of hand. Normally, she would have given birth sometime in September, but Hermione had been using careful applications of a Time Turner that the pair had stolen in their early raids on Death Eater homes. By doing this, she had been able to gain three months on the normal period of gestation – allowing for the baby to be born relatively quicker than normal. The pair had poured over every single text they had concerning time travel on an unborn child and discovered that it had little to no effect at all.

"I'm going to have to get the remainder of my stock put under lock and key" Harry said, getting up to retrieve another packet.

"In the small blue box?"

"Yes…?"

"I ate them" said Hermione.

"If you were not carrying my child, Hermione Potter, I'd use the AK on you" Harry growled before setting off for the kitchen. He was halfway there when Hedwig came zooming into the tent with a letter tied to one leg. "Hey" Harry stroked his owl and was surprised when Hedwig shoved the letter holding leg at him. "Something up?" he wondered and he took the piece of parchment and started to read it. "Oh fuck…!" he muttered.

"What?" Hermione asked.

"Read this" Harry handed her the note which his wife of three months read.

_Harry and Hermione_

_Voldemort has moved all of his prisoners to Hogwarts and is holding them in the dungeons and will execute them in one week. We're getting together to work out a rescue plan and maybe kill Voldemort – you want to join us?_

_Love_

_Luna_

_PS: Please bring Cupcakes_

"Do you think this is genuine?" asked Hermione.

"Has to be" said Harry. "She used the correct code at the bottom"

"That could have been forced out of her"

"Maybe"

"Why now?" Hermione frowned as she re-read the message.

"Because in a week, it will be the anniversary of his greatest victory" Harry said, trying to remember things he had been taught in History of Magic as well as things he had picked up now and again.

"But I thought he would think killing your parents as his greatest victory" Hermione said, puzzled by more than a little.

"He was also defeated that day, so I think we can count that one out" Harry replied. "If he is going for the greatest victory angle, he'd be thinking of the time he managed to kill nearly all of the Aurors stationed in every single magical locale at a single blow – it nearly crippled the Ministry"

"And he is going to kill them then?"

"Makes a sick kind of sense" Harry replied. "A lot of his prisoners are captured Aurors, and the death of their parents would make the students that never managed to escape feel they have nothing to lose by joining the Death Eaters"

"What are you going to do?"

"Fight him" Harry replied. "Fight him on our own terms" and he hurried to send a reply message back to Luna.

_Luna,_

_I believe we are doing the same aim and it would be a good idea to get everyone together for a big party_

_Harry_

_PS: Can not bring cupcakes – oven has gone on strike_

# # # # #

Harry and Hermione had met in the normal place before portkeying back to where the resistance had set up a massive camp – the old nuclear bunker at Warwne, just outside the city of Hull on the East Coast. It had been the idea of Dean's after reading about it during the previous summer holiday. The huge metal doors, designed to withstand nuclear radiation, could easily take several thousand impacts from spells and had enough space to house several hundred in the massive underground complex.

"Nice place" Hermione said, and had promptly begun sneezing.

"Makes sense after all the living in tents and caves and such like" said Neville. "Would you like to sit down?" he asked Hermione, eyeing the bump she could not now hide.

"I'll be alright" she replied. There had been a large ripple of interest when Hermione had been revealed as pregnant – and even more so when the pair revealed that they had married.

"You better come to the Ops Room" said Neville. "We've charmed the map to look like the layout of the inside of Hogwarts" and led the way. Harry and Hermione were welcomed by friends and strangers alike, and both were given a run down of the situation as they knew it.

"Four days ago, one of the elves we have spying for us was told to burn several pieces of parchment that turned out to contain transfer orders. It took us another day to look into it, but we've discovered it was true and we've set up our plans accordingly" Dean said, showing the map spread out on the old area plotting table. "We don't think that You-Know-Who knows about some of the secret passages that run in and out of the school. We've thought about Portkeying into Honeydukes and then using the secret passage you told us about to get into the castle. By the time You-Know-Who realises that something is up, we hope to have a hundred and fifty people inside"

"How many people do you have?" asked Harry.

"A hundred and fifty" Dean replied dryly.

"Has anybody been captured that knows about the secret tunnel?" Hermione asked.

"We've not heard from the Weasley Twins in a couple of days" Seamus replied. "We tried looking for them at the normal meeting point, but they never showed up the whole time we were there. Then again, if they have been forced to move locations…"

"Has anybody even got close to Hogwarts to see what the situation is like?" Harry enquired.

"Not up close, but we know that You-Know-Who has groups of Giants roaming the grounds at night. During the day time he has squads of Death Eaters and supporters patrolling" Dean pointed at several places on the map. "The only place that is not that heavily guarded is the part of the grounds leading up from the lake. There is nothing but open ground there, and anybody trying to get into the Castle would be cut down before they reached the halfway point" and various options were pointed out and explained in great detail.

"If Voldemort _does_ know about the secret passages into the Castle" Hermione said, "We'll have to knock that on the head. What about trying a different approach?" she asked.

"When we raided that big potion supply place the other month, we got a load of Gillyweed" Hermione said. "If we can get halfway over the lake – to a point nobody can see us approaching, we could get inside the castle via the water pipes" and Harry mulled this over in his mind.

"We don't even know where the pipes are" he said.

"They should be about here" Dean tapped a finger on a point close to the shore.

"So we know where they are, but we'd never be able to fit up them" Hannah said.

"Perhaps we can" Harry said, remembering all that he had seen during the 2nd Task of the Tri-Wizard. "When I had to swim to get my hostage, I remember passing what looked like oversized pipes"

"I know those" said Hermione suddenly. "They were put there for when the Castle held more students than it does now. When numbers dropped to a lower figure, several of them were placed out of use. If we can find out which ones are out of use and still connected, we'd be able to get inside the castle without anybody knowing it"

"We should try and aim for the pipes running along the corridor for the Honeydukes passage" Harry indicated where he was talking about. "If we can get a small force into the place and secure the area, we'd have a safe staging area to launch the main attack" he looked up at the others. "I think" he said, "We'd better get everybody together" and Dean, Seamus and Neville nodded and hurried to send the word out.

"Can we really win?" asked Hannah. "I mean… _really_ win…?"

"We shall, or we shall die trying" Harry replied. "We're done running from these bastards"

#

Two days later, and everyone that had remained free gathered at the Bunker to hear the plan. Aurors, Shopkeepers, Students and the general public all stood together to hear Harry outline the plan they had worked on for some time. With not enough room around the plotting table in the Ops room, they had to stand on top of tables, chairs and around the upper gallery and observation areas.

"… and that is it. You've all heard the plan, so if anybody has any objections or wishes to raise any issues, please do so now" Harry finished.

"I was thinking about making them think it was all a ruse" said one of the Muggleborns.

"What do you mean?"

"If we charm the boats to go all the way to the other side of the lake, we could set up dummies wearing wizarding clothes. We charm them to move around and cast a few stunners and such…"

"Good idea" Harry said. "You organise that for us. Now, regarding the prisoners that Voldemort still has" he continued, "We're not sure who he has and where exactly they are in the dungeons. There is also the matter of having a large number of wounded – so a team will go to St Mungos and secure it from enemy attack. Before I leave you to get on with preparations, there is one thing I want to say more on. When most of us attack the Death Eaters, we only stop them – take them down and take them down hard. What use is us simply stunning them if they get revived by their comrades? If you know how to lob somebody's head off, then you'd better do it. We have to try everything that takes out as many as possible. Nobody is to go after Voldemort except for me and my wife – pin him down if at all possible"

"And if we can not?" asked a voice.

"Then hope there is an afterlife" Hermione said dryly.

#

The assault on the castle was held up by a day because they found that they had not enough Gillyweed – and so hard to raid a few places to gather supplies. It would begin in the darkness in order to give them the most cover, and they had also picked out both the best swimmers and the best fighters. All was ready to go, and yet Harry and Hermione were still bugged by the fact they had no idea where the prisoners where in the dungeons. As they sat together in the bunker's dining area, the pair were approached by Hannah and Susan.

"Want a drink?" asked Harry.

"Thanks" Susan said, and took a glass of Firewhiskey from him. The pair sat down and faced the other two.

"Is there something that we can do for you?" asked Hermione.

"You need to know information about stuff inside Hogwarts" Hannah said. "I think we can help you out"

"Oh?" Harry raised an eyebrow. He and Hermione watched as Susan placed a small, cloth covered object on the metal table. She unwrapped it to reveal a round item made out of gold.

"What is it?" asked Hermione.

"Something Susan got from the Department of Mysteries before she managed to escape" Hannah said. "It's an aletheometer" she added.

"A what?"

"A Golden Compass" Susan said.

"I thought those were destroyed years ago by the Ministry" Harry said, touching the gold lid gently.

"Maybe they have had this there for years, or maybe it was only recently confiscated" Hermione said. "How does it work?" she asked.

"There are three dials that correspond to three needles. Turn these to three symbols and then think of your question" Hannah said. "The black needle will point to a symbol that represents a part of your answer"

"Can it be used to find the prisoners?" asked Harry.

"Not be either of us" said Susan. "The art was jealously guarded by the Ministry. I only know what it is from looking through Hannah's family texts years ago"

"But if all the writings were banned…?" Hermione said, feeling a little pain in her stomach.

"The books were ancient" said Hannah, "And my family library has many old books – some of them banned for hundreds of years"

"So how do we read it?" Hermione looked at the aletheometer with curiosity evident in her eyes.

"We need a Seer" said Susan, checking to see if anyone was passing them by. "Nobody has the talent or the ability to even try it except you" the Hufflepuffs both looked at the

"What about Luna?" Harry asked.

"She can only read strong emotions or thoughts, and she has to actually touch the person concerned to get any reading" Hannah said. "We thought that maybe you could try and read it – given your connections to You-Know-Who"

"I'll give it a try" said Harry.

"One thing we _do_ know is that you must treat the question gently" Susan cautioned him. "You should ask for something that is easy to discover"

# # # # #

Harry's reading was not much good, but he did find out that the prisoners were being held in the part of the dungeons once used for storing potions equipment and supplies. With heavy locks and wards still in place, it made the ideal place for somewhere to keep a load of people.

"Time to become Aqua-Man" muttered Harry, setting up a dummy in the boat, taking some of the Gillyweed and slipping under the water. Along with a number of good fighters – mainly from the DA, Harry swam to the pipes and worked his way up to the required floor. The pipes he and the others went up led only to the bathrooms prefects bathroom. The only way to get out was to blast the bottom of the bath apart, and Harry and the others did so with just enough time before the effects of the weed wore off. After a quick drying spell, they hurried up to the corridor with the one eyed witch and waited for the others to arrive.

_**If he had known then what he knew later, Harry would have got the hell out of there with Hermione and left the country…**_


	5. Win, Lose or Draw?

**Win, Lose or Draw?**

"HOLD THE LEFT FLANK!" Harry yelled, firing off a quick volley of curses at a group of Death Eaters attempting to sneak around one side of the battle.

"What left flank?" muttered Luna. "It vanished forty seconds ago" and fired off a volley of lethal looking curses.

"Damn" Harry whispered. "Luna, take a couple of people and work your way along this passage way" he indicated on the map. "We'll have them caught in a crossfire" and the girl nodded and took a few of the liberators with her around the quiet parts. A scream from close behind him caused Harry to turn around and see Voldemort, albeit briefly, and he tried to counter the curse that flew towards him – only to be pushed out of the way by Hermione. They both landed heavily on the floor of the corridor and Harry took several seconds to catch his breath. When he sat up, however, he noticed that Hermione was clutching at her swollen stomach. She looked up and nodded at his unspoken question.

"I think it is" and then passed out clean in a faint.

"Dean! Seamus!" Harry shouted, and both boys came dashing over through heavy fire.

"Is she…?" Dean asked.

"No, but I think the You-Know-What has started" Harry said. "Can you try and get her to the Hospital Wing with a couple of others?" he asked.

"That is going to leave you with too many gone" said Seamus.

"I'm more concerned with Hermione at the moment" Harry said. "I saw Voldemort, if only for a second, and I'm going after him"

"Why?" asked Dean. "You said it yourself that he will want to kill you himself, so he'll be more then happy to wait" and Harry would have replied when the lake started to bubble and boil as if it was in a giant pan. As the attackers looked out, a mast rose up from the depths and was soon joined by the rest of a sailing ship.

"Thank God he turned up in time" Harry smiled.

"She's signalling" said Seamus, and he started to read the dots and dashes coming from a light on the ship. "Fancy meeting you again" he chuckled.

"Reply: Never, repeat, never has a ship been more welcome" Harry said. The sailing vessel swung round slightly and opened up with magical cannons.

"Aye, Aye, Sir" and Harry turned round and went back to his war.

# # # # #

"I did not think that I would see Miss Granger like this again" Pomfrey said as she saw Hermione being brought inside the Hospital Wing. Dean and Seamus found an unoccupied bed and put her gently down on it.

"Actually" Dean said, "She got married"

"To you?" Pomfrey looked up. "Does Mr Potter know?" she asked. The woman wondered if she had enough time to leave the planet before Harry found out.

"Harry and Hermione got married somehow" Dean said. "Anyway… Hermione pushed Harry out of the way of a spell and might have taken some of it herself instead. She's… She's almost due but she said it had started" he finished.

"That is going to complicate matters" the nurse said. "I will take good care of her, but it will be touch and g-" she was cut off by her diagnostic spells suddenly adding to the din of battle and the cries of those dying and injured.

"What's happening?" Seamus asked.

"No… No, no, no, no, no, no…" the nurse abandoned all of her efforts on other people to concentrate on Hermione.

"What's happening?" Seamus repeated.

"Her body is failing, but she is also trying to give birth at the same time" Pomfrey said. "She is fighting to stay alive, but the baby is going to be born sooner rather then later – causing too much strain on Miss Granger" Pomfrey said the old name out of habit.

"I don't understand" Dean looked from Healer to Hermione several times

"She's dying, Mr Thomas" Pomfrey looked up briefly at the pair, "And there is nothing that I can do to stop it…"

# # # # #

Harry pushed, kicked, punched and hacked his way through to the Great Hall – Luna, Parvati, Padma and a number of others following right behind him. If he could get to the Great Hall and take out Voldemort, even if it cost his own life, the Death Eaters would be without leadership and they would begin to lose their ill-gained confidence.

"Luna. Padma. You take a couple of people and stop any Death Eaters coming or going from the east side of the Great Hall. Parvati, you take a group to the west side and do there same there. Under no circumstances is anybody to enter the Hall unless I say so. If I die, and I think that likely, I want everyone to get the hell out of the country. Get to France, tell the Ministry there what has happened and plan a new liberation. I want no heroic barging in and distracting Voldemort – the bastard's mine" and the party split up – save for Luna.

"You are going to win, Harry" she said, placing one hand on his uninjured right shoulder. "I have Seen it to be" and Harry shrugged in reply.

"Seen what it will be?" he said. "I suppose it is nice to know now…"

"You will be victorious, Harry Potter, but you will not like the outcome of what is to be" and Luna hurried away.

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?" Harry wondered. He spent a few moments placing people in the best places for cover and setting traps should the worst come to the worse. Taking a deep breath, the Boy-Who-Lived opened the door to the Great Hall and stepped inside. The house tables were absent, only the Slytherin and Hogwarts crests flew and just the Headmaster's throne remained – occupied by the shadow of a man that did not deserve to be sitting there.

"Good Evening, Mr Potter" Voldemort said.

"Is if you die" Harry replied.

#

"What can you do for her?" Seamus asked. He and Dean had remained at the Hospital Wing to help defend it and also to lend a hand as and when needed.

"I can save the babies or I can save Mrs Potter" Pomfrey replied with a sigh. "I can not, however, save all three of them. She has been hit by a fast acting poison curse which I could treat and cure, but I simply don't have the time to help the unborn children and do all that"

"Make a choice" said Dean.

"If only it was that simple, Mr Thomas. I need the decision of either of the Potters"

"Ba…" they turned round to see Hermione's eyes flutter open.

"Do not strain yourself, Hermione" Dean said gently. "You need to rest and gain your strength"

"Mrs Potter, I will not lie to you. You have been hit by a fast acting curse that is using your own blood against you. Your unborn children are safe for now, but I need a decision on what to do. I can save you, but it would be at the cost of your children. Your husband is off fighting to protect you, and we can't get hold of him. What would you like me to do?" Pomfrey asked.

"Ba…" and Hermione's eyes clouded over before shutting again. Her last movement was to move one hand up and then down – resting on her swollen stomach.

"You have a decision" Seamus said.

"I don't think she knew what was going on" said Pomfrey.

"Hermione heard what you said and put her hand on her stomach – she wants the babies to be saved"

"That is pure speculation" said Pomfrey. She would have said more, but the wands of both Dean and Seamus were levelled between her eyes at point blank range.

"Do it, or I will kill you myself before Harry has the chance" Seamus said in as icy a tone as anyone had ever heard him speak in.

# # # # #

"We're never going to get through all of this lot" said Neville.

"Just too many of them" said a Hufflepuff. "We need to get the First and Second Years out of here, but they'll be on us even if a few of us retreat at the same time"

"Get the younger ones ready to move" Neville said. "We can not get them all out of here without some kind of distraction" and he looked at the Hufflepuffs, Ravenclaws and Gryffindors around him. "Ladies and Gentlemen, it has been a pleasure fighting alongside you all tonight. If you'll excuse me one moment…" and he charged down the corridor screaming at the top of his voice. "COME ON YA BASTARDS! LETS FUCKING HAVE YOU!" and he cast spell after deadly spell.

"Magnificent valour" one of the Ravenclaws said in an awe filled whisper.

"There goes one brave man" the Hufflepuff looked at the wand in his hand. "Ah well… Who wants to live forever…?" and Ernie McMillan rose, gave a Gaelic war cry and charged after Neville.

#

After getting those incapable of fighting to safer places, those still able to carry on fighting gathered together and started making a sweep of the outer areas – posting guards on each of the multiple staircases going up and down between floors. Once that was done, they started moving inwards – taking out Death Eaters, werewolves and other dark allied creatures with the determination of finishing the job that had been started years before. They didn't know if they would live or die, but they all shared the common belief that it was better to die facing the enemy and on the attack then to die as cowards. They didn't simply stun them, but used all of the combat curses that they knew of. A pair of Ravenclaw first years double teamed a Death Eater and blew his head off. The black haired girl gave the lifeless corpse a good kick with all the strength she could muster.

"That's for making me late for class" she said.

#

"What has happened?" asked Seamus.

"She gave birth to twins – one boy and one girl" Pomfrey said, wiping her bloody hands on the bloody apron she wore over her equally bloody uniform.

"That will please Harry"

"No, Mr Finnegan, it will most certainly not please him"

"Why not? He said the other day he wanted on-"

"We lost Mrs Potter"

"You mean… She's… _gone_?" Dean asked, and was so stunned by the suddenness of the news that he mis-stepped backwards and fell to the floor.

"Nothing I did helped to save her. I tried one method and the poison would simply block me…" Pomfrey shook her head and wiped the tears from her face. "There was nothing that I could do…"

# # # # #

"You continue to fight" Voldemort sneered at Harry. Taking quick aim, he fired a curse which was deflected by Harry.

"You continue to live" he replied. His entire body was covered with bruises, deep cuts, slivers of stone and wood had penetrated his body and he suspected his left buttock was… _broken_… seemed to be the best word for it. He could feel the squelching of blood in his shoes, and a lot of his clothing was slick and heavy with it too.

"You are allowing others to fight and die for you? How pathetic"

"Why don't you shut up and die? Give it up, Tom. We've got this place surrounded, the Ministry is under attack and we're going to put you all in a lengthy stretch in Azkaban"

"You fool! I told you once that there is no good or evil – merely power. Surrender, Harry Potter, surrender and become one of my followers – there is nothing that I will deny you at all" Voldemort said. All the time the two spoke, they fired spell after spell, jinx after jinx and curse after curse – but each was deflecting the other's attempts. Despite having trained for months in bringing his full power to bear, Harry was draining rapidly with the amount of spell casting. He didn't know if he could last much longer and was hoping for a lucky break or something to help win the fight.

"What do I get?" he asked.

"Fame, money, riches and all the women you could want" Voldemort said. "Should you choose to leave this place, and the country as a whole, I will give you safe passage to a location of your choice"

"Like America?"

"America" Voldemort agreed.

"America, that'll be nice" Harry inclined his head in thought. "But, My Lord, there is a Million Galleon reward for your capture or proof of your death. I'd never be able to rest easy in my bed at night knowing the reward, _and_ your good self, are still out there to be collected" he gave an ironic bow from the waist to his opponent.

"You would _die_ for a Million Galleons?" Voldemort sounded surprised.

"That's what I signed on for" Harry replied, charging up every last piece of his being for a powerful release.

"Then you will have to do it"

"Grand day for it" Harry said. "If you are going to kill me, I'd like to say something"

"Why not?" Voldemort granted mockingly.

"In the history of your campaigns, over all these years and months, has anybody ever said that you talk too much?"

"One" Voldemort said. "Just one person"

"What happened?"

"I killed her"

"Lord Voldemort?"

"Yes, Harry?"

"You talk too much… _ACCIO LORD VOLDEMORT!_" and the Dark Lord flew through the air and landed in a heap at Harry's feet. His wand came down to point at the chest of what was once the human being known as Thomas Riddle.

"You kill me?" coughed Voldemort. "You wouldn't dare"

"Oh? Wouldn't I?" Harry smiled at the wasted remains of a man. "Shield Charm this you fucker – _BOMBARDA!_" and Harry put the remains of his magical core into blasting a hole through clean through the chest, passing through the internal organs and coming out the back – severing the spinal column and shattering it into tiny fragments. By the time the spell exhausted itself, it had created a small and smoking crater in the floor. Coughing up blood, he reached down and picked up Voldemort's wand – placing it into his pocket. When he reached the doors to the Great Hall, he heard the cheering he had expected to hear, but it was, he thought, rather muted. "You started the party without me?" he said through the pain he was suffering. The first person he saw was Colin Creevy, and he reached out and pulled him closer. "Take down a message, Colin" he said.

"Sure…" Colin seemed a little distant for some reason, but he pulled out a notepad and pencil.

"Make to the Ministry – repeated to Buckingham Palace. Have rejoined freedom south of Inverness. Hogwarts liberated from enemy forces. Extreme heavy damage. Extreme heavy casualties" and Harry paused as if to think of how to end the message. "God Save The Queen. Get that off at once, Colin" and then saw one of the Patil twins coming towards him.

"Harry… You better get to the Hospital Wing…" Parvati said. She was cut all over and looked in a right state. Her paleness, Harry thought, was not entirely due to the effects of heavy combat.

"What, Parvati?" he asked.

"You… I'm so, so sorry, Harry…" she burst into tears.

"We lost the babies?" Harry whispered in shock. "I better get down there"

"Harry…?" Padma's voice caused him to turn around.

"Yeah?", but one glance told him all that he needed to know. He took off at the run, barging past the survivors of the battle. The run from the Great Hall to the Hospital Wing took just three and a half minutes, but it seemed to take forever to him.

"Harry… Mate…" Dean shook his head in sadness.

"No, oh please no…" Harry paled.

"She didn't suffer that much" Seamus said. "I take it that we won"

"We didn't win, Seamus" Harry said, walking towards Pomfrey's office. "We have a tactical victory…" and he saw the person he wanted inside. "Where is she?" he asked.

"We put her in the Morgue" Pomfrey said.

"This place has a Morgue?" Harry blinked. It was one of the few secrets that he didn't yet know about.

"I have not had cause to use it" Pomfrey said, looking up from the papers she was filling in. Harry looked at the topmost one and saw that it was titled _**Death Certificate**_. The name in the space provided was Hermione's.

"What happened to her?" Harry asked.

"She passed away without coming round" Pomfrey lied - she had decided not to say that she had briefly come back. "We managed to save both of the babies, Mr Potter. I am sorry that we couldn't save your wife"

"They are alright?" Harry asked quickly.

"They are perfectly safe. That elf of yours, Dobby, he is looking after them in the Gryffindor dorms" Pomfrey put the quill and the paperwork to one side. "Would you like to see her?" and Harry nodded. She led him to a hidden bookcase at the back of her office, opened it and gestured for him to step inside. "I will leave you alone for as long as I am able. You will be wanting the shelf at the end of the room" she pointed to a series of metal doors built into the stone walls.

"Thanks"

"Mr Potter?"

"Yeah?"

"It isn't pretty" and Harry looked back at her.

"I know" and turned around and went to see his wife's body. He was down there for nearly three hours, holding Hermione's cold hand in his own warm and living ones. Her face was contorted in pain and she still bore the scars of battle and bits of dried blood marred her graceful and serene beauty. As he stood by her still side, Harry did what he could and arranged her hair so that it was in some sort of order. He also adjusted her clothing – giving his wife an added bit of dignity, though a small part of him wondered why he bothered since Hermione was dead and, therefore, no longer cared about such things. His numbed mind decided to come down later and to clean Hermione properly, seal the gaping wounds in her chest from where they had to get their children out before they died and to prepare her for burial.

#

"I was going to come down and see if you are alright" Pomfrey said as Harry came out.

"How long can you keep her there?" Harry asked.

"As long as is needed, Mr Potter" Pomfrey said to him. "I shall return her after the autopsy to establish an official cause of death"

"NO!" Harry said vehemently. "I forbid it completely" he added.

"It is the law, Mr Potter" Pomfrey assured him. "It must be carried out before any burial service is planned"

"I don't care" Harry said. "I explicitly, completely, totally and unreservedly forbid any kind of autopsy to be performed on Hermione. Come to think of it, the same goes for the others who have died defending the school. I think that they have suffered enough, don't you?"

"Yes… Perhaps you are right…" Pomfrey said. "Have you any instructions as to what we should do?" she asked.

"Why bother me about them?"

"The staff, except me, have been rendered unable to do anything. Because you are a member of the Wizendgamot, you are the highest authority at Hogwarts"

"Oh" Harry said. "Just…" he waved his hand around at the room full of injured people, "Just… Just keep doing what you are supposed to do" and he walked away towards Gryffindor Tower to start taking care of his children. He and Hermione had been prepared for all of the trials and tribulations of being parents whilst still little more then children themselves, but now Harry was going to have to grow up just that little bit sooner.

He was going to be a single parent…

**A/N:**

**For what happens next, be ready for the release of the third part of the trilogy**


End file.
